Servants of Whim
by Svendances
Summary: The immortals never seem to answer to anyone or anything. Except their own whim. This is a series of short stories involving the various IAD characters and their whims. Adventure. Humour. Romance. Drama. A bit of everything. Rated T just in case.
1. If I Had a Nikolai'd

_All characters belong to Kresley Cole, I am merely borrowing them for my own (and hopefully your) entertainment. All mistakes are mine. This story is set after Warlord Wants Forever but before No Rest for the Wicked._

**If I Had a Nikolai'd...**

"Tie his arms and legs to each post of my bed," Nix said, a wicked smile blooming on her exotic features as she perched on the window seat. She'd just appeared out of nowhere in the middle of the strategy meeting, her dark hair floating about her and her eyes seeming both mischievous and vacant at the same time. "And leave him there to torture at my own, pleasurable will," she finished, drawing almost identical looks of confusion from the Valkyrie gathered around the table.

At the head of the table, Annika looked up from her notes to stare straight at her sister. Nix was not known for living in the moment – at least not the current moment. Often times she found herself lost in visions of the future. It was a great advantage to have, if only she were lucid enough to share her knowledge. Or perhaps she got off on watching her sisters and, in fact, half the Lore, flounder around trying to figure out her latest riddle. Whatever the reason, Nix was not known for making sense until after the fact, so it was no surprise that she should be off on a tangent of her own right now.

"What are you on about?" Annika demanded impatiently. They were in crisis mode. Emmaline – timid, little, wouldn't-harm-a-fly Emma – had been kidnapped. By a lykae. And, if rumours were true, not just _any_ lykae, but the _king_ of the lykae. Fun stuff, for sure. Eye roll.

Nix cast an innocent gaze in Annika's direction while idly folding a piece of paper. "It's rude to exclude people from the game," she sulked, never once looking at what she was doing as her hands nimbly formed the paper into a complicated looking aeroplane which she promptly launched across the room. "I want to play too!"

"Nix, we don't have time for this," Annika stated, trying to hide her irritation as best she could. "We have to-."

"Catch the dog," Nix finished for her, pulling a second piece of paper from her back pocket when the first plane was brushed to the floor and crushed when it landed in Kaderin's lap.

Annika was almost relieved by Nix's words, which she knew was foolish given her track record. But if she was willing to say something on the subject, maybe they could coax something useful from her before she returned to her own little world. "What do you know about the mutt?" she demanded, striding across the table toward her sister. "What's he doing to her?"

Clearly still in a sulk, Nix crossed her arms over her chest, allowing the new piece of paper to flutter to the ground. "Not telling until you let me play," she said, tossing her hair over her bare shoulder.

"Play what?" Regin piped up from behind her laptop screen where she was checking the coven databases. "We were playing something? Why didn't anyone tell me? I wanna play! Is it my turn ye- OW!" Regin stopped her whining to glare at the dark haired woman beside her. "What'd I say?" she demanded, rubbing the side of her rib cage tenderly.

Lucia, sending her friend a _pipe-down_ kind of look, turned to Nix. "What game? Explain the rules," she requested, adjusting the bow strapped to her back. "What is the prize?"

Nix laughed maniacally and stood gracefully from her seat. As the other valkyrie watched she hopped up onto the table and spread her arms. "If I had a nickel, I'd...?"

Annika sighed. "You _do_ have a nickel, Nix. You pulled it from behind Kaderin's ear an hour ago."

"Wait," Daniela said. "I think I understand."

"Thank goodness," Kaderin muttered, absentmindedly running a hand over her sword, as if she wished to behead Nix – which was an absolutely ludicrous idea, of course.

Daniela was now grinning along with Nix. A part of the joke. She let out a giggle, "If I had a Nikolai'd...?" she prompted the rest of them.

"I don't get it," Regin stated. She was almost tempted to return to her computer search, but something unknown was keeping her attentive. "What's with the nickel talk? We've got money." Pulling out a bottle of nail polish from her back pocket, she began to test the colour on her thumb. "What a nickel to you?"

Danni snorted and and tried again. "Well, if _I_ had a Nikolai'd probably wish I could touch him just so I could..."

Meanwhile out on the porch

Nikolai leaned down to press a reverant kiss into his bride's forehead – some days he still couldn't believe that she was actually his – and breathed in the scent of her shampoo. He lifted her head then, to kiss her lips and found her eyes had turned silver.

"Insatiable," he murmured before taking her mouth in a deep kiss, lazily sliding his tongue in to dance with her own. "Just as well, though," he added after a moment or two, "Because I can never get enough of you either."

But Myst wasn't listening. Not to him anyway. Her ears were pricked and she'd turned her head to the side almost immediately after he'd released her face. Nikolai knew this face well. He'd had to put up with it all evening. For a moment or two he would capture her attention entirely, away from the store displays and exotic looking items, but then suddenly she would be beyond his reaching. Her attention snagged by something else in the vicinity. Usually it was new stock. Myst had a highly developed sense of hearing, attuned to the sound of new stock being put on the shelves. While shopping, her listening pose had not worried him in the least. No though, standing outside Val Hall, the mansion that contained a hell of a lot of Nikolai haters, he didn't think it was a good thing. Here, it would not result in him being able to buy her more lingerie.

"What is it?" he asked, straining his ears, looking for signs of danger.

"Shh," she murmured right beside his ear. "Just listen. In the dining room."

He adjusted the tilt of his head in order to better hear what she was hearing.

"Well if _I _had a Nikolai'd probably wish I could touch him just so I could drive him crazy. Stroking him until he was just about to explode then leave him there to writhe in the pleasure pain."

Myst was biting her lip to keep from laughing, her eyes gone all squinty from the effort. It was absolutely adorable, unlike the time she'd taken on that look in response to his attempt at using the microwave. Nikolai didn't get it though. How could the female do such things to a nickel?

"I don't understand," came another female voice from inside, he thought this one sounded like Annika. "Nix, we have more important things to do than play your silly games. And Danni stop encouraging her." There was a short silence before she spoke again. "Regin, are you getting anything on this guy?"

Regin – the glowing one, Nikolai recalled with a small amount of bitterness – did not respond to Annika's question, but seemed to have a response to Danni's statement. "Oh!"she cried. "I get it now!" She sniggered. "If I had a Nikolai I'd..."

"Cut his ugly head off, tear out his slobbering fang and thread it only my string upstairs," Kaderin stated mildly, sending a shiver down Nikolai's spine. Kaderin's lack of emotions creeped him out. It was unnatural to be so calm all the time. And the creepy factor was aided by the fact that she was, indeed, very hostile toward him.

Nikolai shot a wide eyed glance at Myst, but she merely screwed up her nose and shook her head, indicating it was nothing to worry about. "Kaderin's like that with all nocturnal fangers," she reminded him in a whisper. "She refuses to take exception."

"It would be nice if she didn't point her sword at me every time I passed," Nikolai muttered.

"She'll warm up to you eventually," Myst murmured before sending him a grin. "Danni probably won't, but that's for a completely different reason."

They stopped talking when they heard more voices from inside. Nix had entered the conversation. "Now, now Kitty Kad," she soothed. "Isn't that a little hypocritical?"

"There is only one Vampire Layer in this coven," Kaderin stated. "We all know that. And while I will not hold it against Myst, I _will_ hold my sword against the sucker's throat if he so much as lays a finger on her."

A new voice let out a snort of laughter. "I'm pretty sure he's already laid a finger on her, Kad," Lucia pronounced.

"A lot more than a finger, if she's The Layer," Regin chimed in gleefully.

"Like his mouth," Lucia suggested.

"His boy-boy," Regin added.

"His chest," Lucia again.

"His massive, calloused hands."

"His thighs."

A collective sigh emitted from the females. "Oh, his thighs," Danni murmured.

Nix giggled. "Don't forget his teeth. Pretty, pointy, gleaming white teeth that fit so well at her throat... among other places."

At this, there was a disgusted groan. It seemed to come from all the valkyries within the mansion, not just those in the dining room. There were several grunted "ugh"s and a few "Damn vampire"s followed by Annika's firm, "Enough!" When silence finally reigned again she spoke. "Emma is in serious danger. We need to get her out of there before the dog can maim her!"

* * *

_This is my first IAD fic. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'd really appreciate your feedback._


	2. Murdoch on the Dance Floor

_Thanks to my mum for cracking up when I told her the title of this short story! You really support my pun making confidence. All characters belong to the fabulous Kresley Cole. All mistakes are mine._

**Murdoch on the Dance Floor**

Murdoch sprawled in his favourite armchair with one leg thrown carelessly over the arm as he watched Daniela bop around. He'd been transfixed for hours, unable to take his eyes off those sensual hips as they swayed gently from side to side, or fairly gyrated. Her long legs, clad only in a tiny pair of silver shorts, carried her back and forth across the ice and snow as she created why looked like a miniature ice village, completely with little ice people and ice animals and ice trees. She'd been merrily carving the buildings and figures when he'd returned from a meeting with Kristoff and hadn't wanted to disrupt her, instead he had dragged his armchair out into the snow so he could watch her in comfort.

A light breeze picked up and caught Danni's flowing halter-neck top, lifting it to reveal an expanse of perfect pale skin at the small of her back. She bent at the waist to fix the roof of one of the houses, her hips still rolling from side to side and he nearly fell out of his chair. Her short rode up to reveal the soft under curve of her buttocks and wedge slightly between her cheeks. The uncomfortable pressure that had been slowly making itself known in his crotch area suddenly ratchet up a few notches.

To Murdoch's surprise, Danni looked over her shoulder at him with a cat-ate-the-canary grin before straightening and coming over to dance before him. She raised her arms up into the air and let her head tip back as the music played on in her ears.

"You're killing me," Murdoch grated, reaching out to grab her and pull her down onto his lap where she belonged. But Danni danced out of reach.

"Come dance with me," she called, a joyous flavour to her voice. She hit a button on the little machine strapped to her arm and her body immediately began to move faster as she beckoned him to her with fluid arm movements.

Murdoch shook his head, watching her pert little breast bounce from her actions. "I haven't danced in years," he admitted absently. "I fear I would be, how do you say it? Rusty?"

Daniela rolled her eyes at the love of her life. "Rusty schmusty," she scoffed. "Everyone can dance. It's like riding a bike. Once you know how you never forget."

Before he could protest again, she was in front of him, pulling him to his feet. She leaned up and planted a kiss on his mouth that she had intended to be little more than a quick peck, but once contact was made, Murdoch was reluctant to release her. His arm wrapped around her instinctively, dragging her flush up against his chest while his other hand delved into the hair at the base of her skull, tilting her head for better access. Daniela did not protest his actions but merely kissed him back for a moment, deftly slipping an ear bud from her own ear and inserting it into Murdoch's.

He jerked a little as a lively Latin beat filled his ear, ending the kiss but making no move to rid himself of the ear bud. Sure, he knew that the device strapped to Danni's arm played music so that only she could hear. And yeah, he'd heard the music before when she played it on the stereo inside. But he hadn't been expecting the invasion of his hearing. Looking down at his still grinning bride with wide eyes, he uttered as lightly as he could manage against the slight panic tightening his chest, "I don't know the steps to this dance."

"There are no steps," she informed him, resuming her hip rotations and moving her upper body lightly against him. "Just feel the music and let your body move to it."

Daniela fought to keep herself from laughing out loud as an intense look of concentration came over Murdoch's features. His head began to bob up and down with the beat of the music blaring in their ears. His brow furrowed and his began to move a small amount. Biting her lip in an effort to keep the chuckles from burbling to the surface, she looked down.

His feet were tapping!

She couldn't take it anymore. Wrenching the ear bud away from him, she turned off the iPod and wound the ear bud cord around it before quickly dragging him inside to the living room. She dropped his hand in the middle of the room and gestured to the remaining furniture. "You move the sofa and stuff to the side of the room," she instructed. "I'll put some music on." As she rifled through the CDs stacked beside the stereo, she commented over her shoulder, "I thought you said you'd danced before."

Murdoch grunted in response and for a moment she thought that was all she was going to get from him, but when she inserted the CD into the stereo he said stiffly, "I did the odd waltz, you know, before."

In response, Danni simply pressed play and let the R'n'B song fill the room for a moment. As she danced her way across the room to where he stood, all jerky movements and rolling hips, she watched his reactions. It was clear from the way his eyes turned black that watching her dance turned him on, which was perfect for her new plan. Obviously, starting him on Latin was not a wise idea. R'n'B was the perfect starter. She beckoned him over to the centre of the room, continuing to move her body erotically as the cold breeze blew in through the windows.

He moved slowly, like he was stalking his prey, eventually standing a mere inch or so in front of her gyrating body. "There are so many different dances these days," he said, gazing straight into her eyes. "I don't think I could ever learn them all."

Danni sighed exasperatedly. "I told you, just let your body move to the music. No one cares if you're doing it wrong. In fact, there's not write or wrong way to do it." She stood back, mostly stilling her movements and gestured to his body. "Show me what you've got." When he simply stood there staring at her hungrily she shook her head. "You can't have me until you dance." More standing around. "Look," Danni said patiently. "I'm not going to laugh at you if you make a fool of yourself. Start with your hips. Show me how good you are with your hips."

After a hesitant moment, Murdoch began to move his hips similar to the way Danni had been rolling hers just before. He looked awkward and stiff. Not at all comfortable with what he was doing. It took every ounce of Danni's well honed self control not to laugh at him.

"That's good," she encouraged. "How about trying to man it up a little? You look a gay guy on a first date. Relaaaaaax." To show him what she meant by relax, she lazily resumed her hip movements. "It shouldn't be hard work." She closed the distance between them, her breasts rubbing against his broad chest through the thin fabric of their clothes, then their hips touched. He jerked away, shocked, and she grinned knowingly, an idea forming. She ground herself against his jeans more insistently. "Think of this type of dance like sex," she murmured in his ear. "Two bodies intertwined on the dance floor, bumping and grinding against each other."

In the next instant, she found herself turned around as Murdoch gripped her hips in his massive hands, grinding against her ass in time with the music. "Like this?" he grated into her neck, leaning down to sweep his lips across the soft skin.

"Sort of," she allowed. "I think you need to prove yourself on your own before you disgrace yourself."

A few hours later, Murdoch was still trying to prove his dancing ability to Danni as she sat on the back sofa, moving her upper body with the music. Despite her promise not to laugh at him, she'd found the urge irresistible on a few occasions. To her amazement, each time this happened, rather than get discouraged or frustrated, he seemed to get more determined, redoubling his efforts. She had to admit, he'd certainly improved over the course of the evening.

Now, Danni looked at the clock on the wall and gasped. She was late for Karaoke Night. Murdoch seemed to notice her reaction and followed her gaze to the clock then glanced outside. There was a storm brewing in the distance.

"I shall take you to the Karaoke then come back and set the storm defences," he stated, moving to the stereo and turning it off. When he turned back around she wasn't in the room. By chance, he glanced out the window and saw his Bride stomping all over the ground where she had built her ice village earlier. Ice houses cracked and fell to the ground all around her. Faintly he heard her growling something that sounded like, "Godzirra! Ra, ra, raaaahhh!"

"What are you doing?" he asked, stepping outside.

Danni was now jumping up and down on a group of ice people that had been grouped together. She looked up at him with a joyous grin, "They're just gonna die in the storm anyway, so I thought I'd let them die epically!" she announced. After a few more stomps here and there she looked around her and nodded in satisfaction. "Okay," she said. "Let's go."

"Sorry I'm late," Danni cried, plopping onto a stool beside Regin. "I was trying to teach Murdoch to dance."

Across the table, Kaderin raised an eyebrow in Danni's direction. "How's that working out for you?"

She glanced across the room where the group of men stood with grave expression on their faces as per freaking usual. Danni swore that the Wroth brothers had no idea how to have fun, luckily, also in the midst of the men was Cade and his merry group of demon mercenaries and a full keg of demon brew.

"He's improving," Danni mentioned, inclining her head in the direction of the men so that her companions would glance over to see Murdoch rotating his hips and making wild, frustrated looking hand gestures while he spoke to his brothers. "I don't think he gets the concept though."

Just then Nix, who for some unknown reason had managed to gain control of the mike, called across the room. "Oh Danni, girl! The mike, the mike is calling!" Then she giggled. "I have the perfect song for you!"

She made her way to the stage, unable to deny the great Nix on a night like this. The backing track started playing innocently enough, she recognised it in an instant. When she glanced down at the lyrics though, she had to laugh.

Murdoch watched Danni as intently as he had her dancing earlier in the evening. She stood confidently on the stage, holding her mike between both her hands, laughing her guts up. Beside him Cade muttered, "She should have come in by now." The music stopped and Danni sobered up in a matter of a few minutes, pointing at Nix and shaking her head slightly.

"Okay," she said into the mike, "I'm ready. Start the music." The music started and a moment later, Danni began to sing, a huge grin plastered on her face as she stared straight at Murdoch.

He was so captured by the look in her eyes that he almost missed the first line. When it did eventually register on his ears, the table of women Danni had just left was falling over with laughter. Murdoch frowned at them before turning to his younger brother. "What did she just sing?" he asked.

Sebastian, trying his hardest not to laugh, replied in a strained kind of voice, "I can't be sure, but it sounded like..."

"She didn't!" Cade cried jubilantly, losing himself to loud guffaws. "Oh! That's brilliant!"

On Murdoch's other side, Nikolai, was chuckling lightly. "I do believe she said-."

Just then, Danni reached the chorus, articulating each word of the first line very clearly so that there was no mistaking the lyric. "_It's Murdoch on the dance floor. And he's gonna kill the groove. DJ..._" The rest of the song was essentially lost as the entire club erupted in gales of laughter.

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_Please drop me a line and let me know what you think. And if anyone can think of a punny title using Sebastian's name, that'd be great =P_


	3. Hollow Sebastian

_Hey. How ya doin'? It's been a while, hasn't it? Don't worry though. I haven't died. This story has been sitting half finished since about three days after I posted the last one. Today, I finally found the time to finish it. Hope you enjoy it._

_Thanks to Shreek for Beta-ing for me, and generally giving me the idea for Sebastian's story._

**Hollow Sebastian**

"We're winning," Dasha announced triumphantly, knocking shoulders with her younger sister.

They were gathered in the living room at Val Hall. The Valkyrie were perched all around the room watching the fierce battle with rapt attention. Bowls of popcorn could be found in various places about the room, their contents spread across the floor. Dasha, Rika and Kaderin all sat on the back of the couch, flourishing their Wii remotes back and forth.

Rika gave Dasha a toothy grin, redoubling her efforts on the controller. "Don't deny it, Sebby. We're winning."

Dasha leaned in closer to the screen and with a few flicks of her wrist she launched a surprise attack on her opponents. "Shouldn't you be better at this than us?" she asked idly. "I mean, you've lived in this time _how_ long?"

Distracted from his defence efforts at Dasha's word and the fresh rain of popcorn that pelted his back, Sebastian hunched over his own controller, his movements jerky and inefficient. "That sentence does not make sense," he gritted, falling to the side slightly in reaction to a fresh attack on the screen. "How could I have been in this particular time any longer than you?" Letting out a low growl, he thrust his remote up into the air. "The time," –grunt, double tap – "in which we live at current does not change from person to person."

A chorus of boos and hisses met his ears as he struck at Dasha's game character and yet another round of popcorn hit.

"Each second is as measured as the last," Sebastian stated, less tense now that he had levelled the playing field. "Each minute is the same in length. Each-"

Dasha, feeling rather cocky despite the hit on her life line, gestured to herself and Rika, stating slowly and carefully, "Just arrived from the past." She then pushed on Sebastian's shoulder. "Been here all along."

He grunted, pushing back at Dasha as she returned her attention to the game. "I have had little time for these things in my life," he said reluctantly. Truly, he'd only discovered video games in the last few months. He'd felt left out, watching his Bride bonding with her long lost sisters over the contraptions. After a week of Dasha and Rika exclaiming their joy with the games they too were newly discovering, Sebastian had taken Kaderin into the living room of their estate, presented her with a brand new Nintendo Wii console and requested that she teach him. She had given him a private smile and deftly set up the machine, barely looking at what she was doing as Sebastian stared over her shoulder the entire time.

Rika giggled, jumping up and down on the couch as she tried to fend off a double team attack from Kaderin and Sebastian. "Too much to do in your dark little hole?" she asked merrily.

A snigger broke forth from Dasha as she leaped down to the floor, fighting out the digital battle as if she were warring against the biggest enemy in the Lore. "More like he couldn't find the light switch in his dark little hole," she cried. "Didn't know what a light switch was! Haha!" Rika tittered out her own laughter, almost falling off the back of the couch as she waved her controller in the air.

"Stop distracting me," Sebastian bit out, moving over to see around Dasha's dancing form. "I've almost got the hang of this thing."

Kaderin, who had been oddly quiet during the argument and indeed, the entire gaming experience, muttered under her breath, "That's what you said last night."

Dasha stopped her movements abruptly, her jaw dropped open and her eyes widened dramatically. She turned around completely to face her sister, the game completely forgotten. "You didn't!" she exclaimed, an evil grin slowly forming on her lips.

At the same time a look of abject horror came over Rika's face. She had dropped her controller and clamped her hands tightly over her pointed ears. "I don't need to hear these things!" she exclaimed, shaking her head from side to side. "It's bad enough when you say you love the leech. But really. Do you have to say things like that? You'll make my tender ears bleed."

"Tender?" Regin scoffed from the sidelines. "I seem to recall some pretty suggestive comments last week when I took you on a field trip. Remember that? Wanna tell the class what you said to that pretty demon?"

"Butt out, Regin," Rika snapped, picking up her controller once more in order to save her game character's behind.

Regin chuckled and began repositioning herself in the room, dragging Lucia over to stand in view of the four battling Loreans. She instructed Lucia how to stand and her arms crossed and then leaned in close to her best friend, lowering her voice as she reached up to stroke her shoulder. "What would you do if I stroked your horns?" she whispered suggestively. "Would it be fast and hard? Or slow and sensual?" Lucia said nothing, only raising her eyebrow a fraction of an inch. "Perhaps I should find out for myself?" Regin continued, raising her hand as if to run it along the length of an imaginary horn. She then abruptly ended the re-enactment, turning to face Rika.

"If it weren't for me you'd be demon chow right now. That dude was _mated_."

From there, the gathering had dissolved into a fist fight, which was always much more entertaining to watch than the game play on the screen, and also the perfect cover for Sebastian to take hold of his Bride and trace away.

Arriving at the estate, Kaderin stepped out of his reach and started leading him toward the bedroom, but Sebastian wasn't having it. He was on a mission. A mission that required his full attention and the aid of his Bride. He pulled her to the couch in the living room and fired up the game console that sat on the coffee table.

"Bastian, what are you doing?"Kaderin asked, clearly disappointed.

He grabbed his controller and sat down next to her, handing her the walk through he'd found on the internet the day before. "Dasha is ahead of me. I can't let her take the lead."

"You always get so worked up about these things. It doesn't matter if she's further than you."

Clicking through the options to start playing, Sebastian turned to look at her. "She shouldn't be better at this than me. She's just arrived here in this age!"

"Valkyrie have a natural affinity for technology, she can't help the way she is," she stopped a moment, shaking her head. "Why are you comparing yourself to her anyway?"

"I need to prove myself. You saw how they all laughed at me. If I can't prove my skill with the technology they will never accept me."

"They already accept you, Bastian," she told him gently. "You saved me."

"They're grateful, that's different to accepting," he grated. "Now are you going to help me or not?"

Kaderin shook her head and held up the sheaf of paper he'd given her. "Dasha doesn't need one of these," she commented. "And I don't either."

Sebastian rolled his eyes and looked over at the love of his life. "But I do," he said.

An hour later, Kaderin was sitting cross legged on the coffee table, trying to hold in her laughter as she listened to Sebastian's incessant babbling. He'd started complaining about the game almost the moment he started playing. His practical mind instantly picking apart the graphics and plot.

"What the hell?" he exclaimed, jumping off the couch in his outrage. "I just _left _the elevator room! Now I have to go _back_? Again? This is ridiculous. There is absolutely no logic behind this game. None!"

Kaderin did her best to keep a straight face as she nodded her head in agreement. "I know, that's what's so great about it."

"Stop laughing at me. I'm serious!"

"Serious about a game, brother?"

Sebastian dropped the controller and spun around at the sound of his brother's voice. "Don't you ever knock, Nikolai?"

By way of reply, Nikolai sent him a grin and settled himself into the arm chair beside and asked, "What are we playing?" He leaned forward to scrutinise the screen. "Oh, Kingdom Hearts. Myst finished this one ages ago. So what's the problem here?"

"It's completely ridiculous," Sebastian said simply, tossing the controller onto the table beside his bride. "I've been through the elevator room a dozen times already and I'm not getting anywhere."

"What about the waterfall?" Kaderin prompted, obviously enjoying antagonising her mate. "Tell him what was wrong with the waterfall."

Throwing his hands up in the air in frustration, Sebastian looked pointedly at his Bride and said, "Don't think I don't know what you're doing," before quickly addressing his brother. "So there's a waterfall when you arrive at the Hollow Bastion and it's completely massive and seems to just go into a big hole in the planet, except there's an ice platform and a pond area down there. Where does the rest of the water go?"

Nikolai's lip twitched and his voice sounded strained as he spoke, "Brother... I think perhaps you've been spending too much time at Val Hall."

Sebastian raised his eyebrow in suspicion. He didn't like that his brother's face had turned a deep burgundy colour, an obvious result of contained laughter. Nor did he like that his beloved Bride was now curled up in a ball - a violently shaking ball - and laughing so hard that she squeaked.

With the addition of the squeaking, Nikolai was unable to hold back and began to laugh, "You sound... like Myst ... when... when... when some sales lady... tries to sell her a knockoff handbag."

"But it makes no logical sense!"

This set off more laughter and giggles, frustrating Sebastian no end. He was already fighting off grinding his teeth from the incomprehensible nonsense that was Kingdom Hearts. Now he could practically feel the vein in his forehead pulsing.

After taking a few deep breaths Nikolai raised his hands in an appeasing manner. "It doesn't have to make sense, Sebastian. It's like a digital fairy tale."

"Don't forget the Darkball," Kaderin added, having recovered significantly enough from her laughter to rejoin the conversation, but ignoring Nikolai's attempts to calm his brother down. "Remember the Darkball?"

"That blasted vein-y balloon thing!"

"Right," Nikolai said, still fighting a snigger and not really following. "Look, I just came over to ask if you'd heard from Murdoch recently, but since you're having an argument with a video game, I'll come back later. Maybe when you've resolved your issues." He stood and nodded to his brother's Bride. "Always a pleasure, Kaderin. It's good to see that someone is still making light of his over thinking."

"Happy to serve a purpose," Kaderin replied as Nikolai disappeared. To Sebastian, she said patronisingly, "Time to put the toys away. We'll finish tomorrow." After a pause, she moved closer to him and added, "I can think of a few ways to burn off this agitation." She wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed a kiss to his ear, whispering softly, "To the bedroom, James." And just like that the living room was empty.

* * *

_Thanks, as always, for reading. Hope you find a moment to let me know what you think._


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